Alice and Margaret in Wonderland
by Lovely girl 10
Summary: After Alice is done with her trip, she goes to Wonderland. Margaret, after her husband has left her, decides to go with her sister. Alice/ Tarrant, and Margaret/ OC.
1. me and my sister

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Lewis Carrol and Tim Burton are the rightful owners.

Chapter 1- Me and my sister

Alice's point of view

_You cannot live your life to please others. The choice must be yours. _I remember Mirana's word too well. I was just on my way back home from my trip to China. I left the ship after all of the crew went home. This was my last day of work. My dreams of Wonderland have been coming back to me instantly when I returned.

However, I had no time for that, for the moment. One of the crewmembers gave me a letter saying that it is from a family member.

It said.

_Dearest sister, Alice_

_I have some news to tell you. I want you to come to my house whenever you can. I want to have a nice chat with you about your trip. The news I have for you is about our mother and my husband. _

_Sincerely,_

_Margaret Kinsleigh_

I got to a carriage and told the person to take me to the Manchester mansion. The mansion was not that far from the ships. I arrived at the mansion a few minutes later. When the rain started pouring down.

The mansion was stunning, even in the rain. I had honestly never been to my sister's house before. It had a beautiful shade of purple and silver for the colors. The windows were made as stained glass. I almost felt curious about the place. I rushed over to the door and went inside.

Once I was inside, I took my blue jacket off. "You arrived without any trouble. Welcome sister." Margaret greeted. She was in our mother's old rocking chair. Mother had given her chair to Margaret at her wedding. Margaret had her purple dress on and her hair was in a bun with braids.

"Our dear mother died of a high fever." Margaret told me. "I'm sorry." I murmured. Margaret took a hold of me and hugged me. "When you were out on your trip she had been feeling odd. She didn't know what to expect." She soothed.

"I suppose a funeral will be coming soon." I guessed, "What else did you want to tell me?" I was already looking in the room for Lowell, but he wasn't around. "You are looking for him, are you? He left me for another woman." Margaret said. I looked at her. Did he really do it?

Margaret turned away and grabbed a picture. It was of her and Lowell at their engagement party. "Margaret, I actually have a confession about Lowell. At my first engagement party, I saw Lowell with another woman. He told me not to mention it to you, fearing that you would never trust him again." Margaret turned to me with an intense gaze.

I continued, "He told me that I shouldn't ruin your marriage. I tried to tell him that I am not the one sneaking around without you noticing him. That was when Hamish told me to go to the gazebo. I should've told you." "I don't blame you, Alice. I knew something was up with him after you left." Margaret told me as her attention was back onto the picture. She said that after mother had died Lowell was making plans to escape London. She guessed that he was scared of our mother and me because we were keeping an eye on him.

Now with mother gone and when I left to China, he didn't hesitate to make his move. He was never heard from again. I listened to the thunder outside of the house. As the lightning clashed, Margaret lets out a loud scream and smashed the picture. The glass was broken on impact. She also threw the picture and broke most of the antics and the dishes. She was hitting the wall with her arms that bruises were starting to form.

I quickly grabbed her arm, "Margaret!" She stopped throwing the remaining dishes and buried her face into my chest. As she cried, I could hear her saying, "That jerk ruined my life!"

I placed her in the rocking chair and went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. Margaret was trying to calm down as I got her to drink it. "How has your expedition been going?" She asks, her tone of voice was seemingly calm.

I explained, "The trip went well. We did not bump into any bad weather. We did have a hard time into getting the countries to trade with us. Nevertheless, they soon warmed up to the idea. We found extraordinary treasures. Some jewels, some new trading tools. It was really good." I had been working with Lord Ascot for three months since that engagement party for me was off.

I made my father's wish to expand his dream come to reality. However, my dreams of wonderland were still haunting me, even when I was working. I told Lord Ascot that I was done with working and that I will be leaving the business to him. He was shocked at first, but he took my offer without any problems.

"Let's get some sleep." Margaret told. I took the cup to the kitchen and went up to the guest bedroom. "Alice, do you mind if I sleep with you?" Margaret asked. I nodded. We have not slept with each other for a long time. We brushed our teeth, got into our pajamas and got under the covers.

"Tomorrow is mother's funeral, so I already have the clothes figured out." Margaret mentioned. "Good night sis." I gave her our official good night hug. "Good night Alice." She yawned. We fell asleep as we listened to the rain outside.

_Okay. I will be working on chapter 2 for this story. Review anytime you want to._


	2. Return to Wonderland

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that deals with Alice in Wonderland

Chapter 2 – Return to Wonderland

Alice's point of view

In the morning, Margaret and I started to get ready for mother's funeral. My sister was in the shower as I brushed my hair and styled it with a ponytail. As I was beginning to get the clothes on, I noticed that something was missing; the corsets. I even looked at our shoes and seen that there was no stockings.

"We don't need them." Margaret told. "We don't need the stockings either." I looked at her, confused by what she was saying. Seeing my expression, Margaret explained carefully, "Since that mother is not here, I will be deciding what we can do. What I mean is, Alice, when a parent is not around to take care of their kids, the eldest sibling is the one in charge." "I understand sister." I said, realizing that she is right. "And it precisely means that we don't need to be proper like everyone else." She added with a smile.

Like me, Margaret despised the stockings and corsets, but she did not have the guts to do what I did. We had to wear black dresses and black shoes. She called for one of her carriages and they got us to our destination.

The funeral was almost packed with people we knew. "Dearly beloved, we have gathered here today to say our farewell to one of our finest ladies of society. Helen Kinsleigh lived life to the fullest." We heard the preacher say. It took a total of 3 hours at the funeral. Margaret and I had to stay for one hour to say hi to everyone and accept his or her blessings for a good future.

After the carriage ride back home, my sister and I walked up to the house. I got up to the door and I was beginning to open it, until I felt something wet on my back. I could tell that it was mud.

"Oh, Alice…" Margaret beckoned. I turned to see my sister…playing in the mud. "Margaret, what are you doing?" I asked with an annoyed sigh. She threw a handful of mud in my direction and it hit my leg. "You asked for it!" I playfully yelled as I grabbed the mud and threw it in her direction. It had been a long time since I heard her laugh. She and I also went back inside to clean up and decided to gather up the stockings and the corsets and watch the clothing burn in the fireplace. "I miss being improper." Margaret sighed. "I wish we could do this more often." I mentioned. I did not notice that my sister embraced me.

The next morning, I saw my sister pacing back and forth in the living room. "I have been thinking about moving. To have a new life away from all of this-," She stopped when we heard the doorbell ring. She answered the door and had received a letter.

"The Ascots are having Hamish's wedding reception at their place." Margaret read. This took me by surprise. Lord Ascot did mention that his son had already found a new bride. "Who has he married?" I asked. "His new wife is… Marilyn Fisher. After you turned him down, Alice, he immediately worked on finding a new wife. Apparently, she owns a successful fishing company." Margaret read the invitation carefully.

Against my wishes, we went to congratulate the new couple. Margaret called for a coach and in no time, we arrived at the party. The violins were playing and everyone was chatting up a storm. "The lad is so lucky." Men would say. "I heard that he and his new wife were old childhood friends." One woman said.

My sister got out of the coach first and waited until I got out. We were dressed in our most comfortable dresses. Mine was the classic blue dress, and Margaret went for her purple dress. When we were getting close to the party, our friends Faith and Fiona came over.

"Go to the center of the garden. The women are gossiping about Margaret." Faith told us. "Why would they?" I asked. Fiona continued, "Some of them are saying that Margaret will die an old spinster after all, others were saying, well… You get the picture." Margaret smiled, trying to hide the tears, "Thank you for telling us."

Margaret sprinted toward the garden. I followed closely behind. The center of the garden had a beautiful water fountain that was surrounded by white and red roses. My sister was sitting on a bench, and she was waiting for me. "So, where do you plan on moving to?" I asked as I sat next to her. She sighed, "Either America, or somewhere else in Europe. I just have no idea of where to go."

Margaret told me, "The reason why I want to move is because I am tired of society life. I don't want to wear stockings and corsets anymore! Neither to just drink tea and talk about the latest fashions. They have been talking about you too, Alice. 'When will the girl settle down and get married already? When will she just accept reality and forget about her impossible ideas?' I AM SO SICK OF IT ALL!" She burst into tears, "I just wish to go somewhere where we don't need to be proper all the time."

Where would we go? The only place I could think of was… Wonderland. That's it! I got up from the bench as Margaret was wiping away her tears. "Margaret, I think I know the exact place where you and I can go. Just follow me." I said.

As I ran, I heard Margaret calling, "Where are you going?" I continued to run through the branches. I was at the exit of the maze as I kept running toward the tree. I slowed down when I saw that the rabbit hole was still there.

I waited for Margaret to catch up. She looked like she was exhausted from the running. "Never do that again." She panted, "Goodness! I almost forgot how good it feels to not have a corset." I crouched down as she began to ask, "Alice, above all of the things in the world, why did you pick a rabbit hole? I know you said that you love rabbits, but there is no need to look for one."

I turned to her as she began to crouch beside me. "If you want to have a new life away from society then grab my hand and don't let go." I said as I held my hand out to her. She took my hand and held on tightly. I let gravity do the rest as I fell into the hole, dragging my sister with me.

Margaret's point of view

I thought that we would hit dirt pretty soon, but the hole kept on going with its twists and turns. I screamed as we continued falling through the hole, and I was completely surprised that my baby sister was laughing. I have never seen anything like this before. I looked around the hole to see clocks, paintings, and maps all around the hole.

We crashed through something and landed roughly on each other. At least it's over. I tried to ask if my sister was okay, but we fell again on the floor. I quickly realized that we were on the ceiling. I got myself up and took a good look at where we are. We seem to be in a room filled with doors, all of them had different styles and sizes.

I was about to open one of the doors when Alice stopped me saying that the doors are locked. She was right by a little round table, which held a box. "There's a note." Alice spoke. I went right beside her and read the note with her.

It said,

_Alice, _

_As you can see, the pishsalver_ _is no longer here. I was thinking that you don't want to go through the whole shrinking and growing process again, plus Tarrant wanted you in your 'proper size' so I am giving you a key that opens one of the big doors. This key will lead you to my castle. _

_I hope to see you again soon!_

_Mirana, the White Queen_

When she was done reading, Alice grabbed the key and went to try to open the doors. "Who is Mirana?" I asked. Alice spoke, "She is a friend of mine. Ah, there we go." The key opened the door and my sister went inside. "Come along now, Margaret." She called. I went through the door and closed it behind me.

I was standing in a huge garden with my sister. The garden was covered with different types of flowers and trees. I looked around and seen a giant white castle. "Welcome to Mamoreal, Margaret." Alice said as she came beside me.

I heard nearby footsteps and I listened closely as a woman spoke in a serene voice, "The flowers seem sad. Have you been speaking with them?" Another woman answered her, "Yes, Your Majesty." The other woman softly spoke, "Perhaps a bit more kindly."

I could see a young woman with a white dress coming into the garden. She was accompanied by a few men and women. When the woman saw us, she asked her advisors in a polite way, "Would you all excuse me for a moment? Thank you." Her advisors understood and left the garden as the white woman rushed over to see us.

"Alice, I see that you have used my key." The queen said. "Mirana, this is my sister Margaret." Alice introduced. The queen examined me from a distance before she said, "I almost thought that she could have been your young mother or an identical twin." I quickly spoke, "I am none of those. I am her older sister."

The queen actually smiled, "I see. Well then, I shall call the servants to get your rooms ready. Are you planning on staying here Alice?" As we walked back to the castle, Alice told the queen that her trip to China was done and that she does not have anything else to do.

"What about your sister, Alice?" Mirana asked with a curious glance. Alice explained, "My sister has had a rough time back in our world and she just wanted to-," I finished for her, "I just wanted to spend some quality time with my baby sister."

The room was very luxurious. I was up on the balcony watching the night sky as Alice was brushing her hair. When she was ready, Alice came outside with me. "Are you getting comfortable sister?" She asks.

I nodded. "I actually feel more at ease here." Alice smiled, "Good. I will be heading for bed." She left the balcony and got herself under the covers. I soon got into bed myself. As I watched the clear night sky, I fell asleep.

_I am done with chapter two! Feel free to review anytime you want._


	3. Old friends and new friends

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

_I would like to say thank you to all of the readers who take their time to read my stories. In case any of you would like to know, in the first and second half chapters of the story I wanted to be sure that Alice and Margaret got their sister moments in the story. _

_The rest of the chapters will be with what the sisters do in wonderland. _

**Margaret Kinsley: Can we keep going? I want to see what happens next!**

**Alice Kinsley: I agree sister. Lets continue with the story!**

Disclaimer: I don't own the books or the movie. Tim Burton and Lewis Carroll are the rightful owners.

Chapter 3 – Old friends and new friends

Alice's point of view

It has been a day since I returned to Underland, and since I brought Margaret with me. To be honest, she really likes the castle. Right away in the morning, she took a tour of the castle with Mirana. Margaret mostly likes the library, the kitchen and the garden. Margaret even gained a good friendship with Mirana.

As Margaret and I walked into the kitchen and I could see the white rabbit coming in the opposite direction. "Good morning Alice. Good morning another Alice." McTwisp stopped for a moment and looked directly at my sister. "Is it just me, or is there a clone of our champion?"

"No, McTwisp. This young woman here is Alice's older sister." Mirana said as she came in. "Oh, I thought that she could be her young mother, it's good to see a new face in Underland." McTwisp replied.

When I was getting some breakfast I heard the doorbell ringing. "I'll get it!" Mirana called, leading my sister to take a seat next to me and answered the door. McTwisp left to go outside in the garden. "Oh, Mara! How nice to see you again!" Mirana was seen hugging a young woman in a radiant blue dress. She had different blue colors on her dress and the design was with diamonds. It looked like the diamonds were reflecting in the sunlight. The dress was a one shoulder on her left and on her right arm, there was a diamond mark in the same color. The woman had ocean blue hair and sky blue eyes, but her makeup was of red eye shadow and blue lipstick.

"Alice, Margaret, may I introduce to you my cousin Mara. She is the Blue Queen of diamonds." Mirana grabbed my hand and spoke, "It's a pleasure to meet you two. My cousin has told me so much about you Alice." I smiled, "Thanks."

Mirana said, "She came here all the way from Oceania, Terwa(1). She and I have some research to do. Um, where is your guard, cousin?" "Oh, he went over to the Hare and the Hatters place. You know how he misses his best friend." Mara explained.

"I see. Alice why don't you go see Tarrant, I am sure he wants to see you." Mirana told me. I immediately got up from my chair. Margaret asked Mirana if she should come with too and the queens said that my sister is free to go wherever I go.

As we walked through the Tulgey Woods, my sister and I started a decent conversation. "Mirana asked me to be in her court!" Margaret excitedly said. "I bet if mother had lived she would be furious with you." I told her, "To be honest, I was thinking you could do it!"

Margaret squealed, "I am just so glad that you brought me here Alice!" "So am I, I couldn't just leave you alone up there." I confessed. "How right you are. Also for my new life, I will not be falling for another man for as long as I live. All I need is my baby sister," Margaret told me as she hugged me.

"Can I ask you something? When I got your letter, you had your maiden name instead of your married name. How come you changed it?" I asked. Margaret told me that she did not want to go by the name of Manchester anymore and wanted to be a Kinsley again.

"May I ask you something? Who is this Tarrant that Mirana told you to go see?" Margaret asked. I decided to tell her everything about what I know. From the beginning of my adventure as a child to when I returned a second time. I even told her about my battle with the Jabberwocky, which my sister stayed silent until I finished. "Oh my goodness! You went through all of that. This day gets weird by the minute!" She commented.

We arrived at the Hare and Hatters house. The record player was on, the teapots were warm, but one thing was missing, the hatter and his friends. I tried to call them, "Tarrant, Mally, Thackery!" Margaret only took a sip of one of the teacups. "This is better than the tea back at home. I think it smells like… Strawberry with banana or grape with plums.(2) Whoever made this is really a genius!" She said as she continued to try out the tea. I continued my search, which had little progress.

Where could the hatter be? I went inside of the windmill and checked each room. No one was there. I went outside as my sister asked me if I found them. "They aren't here." A voice yelled. Margaret and I jumped as we tried to figure out who was here. I looked up to see a young man on top of the windmill. (3) He looked like he could be in Hatters age but he looked a bit older than my sister. He had short dirty blonde hair, pale skin (But not as pale as the Hatter's) and very sharp sapphire eyes. He is very tall and flexible as he jumped from the roof and landed safely on the ground.

"Sorry for scaring you ladies. I believe introductions are in order. My name is Asher Low Crater. I am one of the Blue Queen's guards." Asher introduced himself. "I am Alice Kinsley and this is my sister Margaret." I introduced. "Hello." Margaret spoke. "Hi." Asher replied. I asked him why he said that the Hatter and the others were not here. "I checked the perimeter of the house, inside and out. I even thought that Tarrant left a note to tell us where he is, but there is none." Asher explained.

Margaret's point of view

I paid close attention to my surroundings as my sister chatted with the guard. I thought for a moment. If I were Tarrant, where would I hide? I seen at one moment a chair was twitching back and forth. That is strange. Then I seen a teapot rolling out from underneath the cloth and some type of hand was trying to get it back. I stepped closer to the table as I heard a soft giggle from the table. I do know for one thing that tables do not laugh or have hands.

"Hey Asher! Have you checked underneath the table?" I called. He and Alice came over quickly. "You think that my friend is under the table?" Asher guessed. "I am certain. Tables don't laugh or have teapots rolling out from under it, or the chairs twitch by themselves." I told. We crouched down, grabbed the cloth, and looked underneath.

"Nothing's there." Alice said, "Except Chess." When she spoke a cat with a wide grin came out from underneath the table. "Good morning everyone." The cat greeted. "Chess, what were you doing down there?" Asher asked. Chess smiled, "I just didn't want you guys to ruin the surprise that Tarrant has." Asher wondered to himself about the surprise. Alice and I just stared at the cat. Alice spoke, "He has a surprise?"

After the cat disappeared leaving a 'See you later' gesture, we heard someone yell "Surprise!" Alice and I jumped, however Asher did not jump and from my guess was that he knew who would do that. Then I seen a mouse, a march hare and a man with orange hair and green eyes appeared in front of us, literally appeared. "You are sneaky on surprises Tarrant." Asher chuckled. "Wait! They were invisible!" I exclaimed, dumbstruck by the trick.

"We actually got a head start to prepare for a surprise party and Cheesur helped us with his trick. It was a perfect opportunity!" The mouse said. As Asher gave the cat a rub on his head, I took a glance at my sister who went straight for the strange man who is named Tarrant.

"Your back!" He yelled with excitement as he embraced her. "I told you that I'd be back before you knew it!" Alice told. He replied, "Actually Alice… I already knew that you would be back." Alice looked like she was confused.

Tarrant explained, "It has only been three weeks since you left and I had a feeling that you would return." "But, back at my world it was three months!" Alice said. "Time is faster up there."Tarrant told her, "You are late again by the way naughty girl. Before you came here, I was almost going to kill Time again in order for you to return, but Chess told us you and your sister was – that is your sister right?."

Alice turned to me and laughed, "Yes. Hatter, Margaret came with me to Underland. In addition, your friend Asher wanted to see you. Is time still not agreeing with you?" Tarrant took out his pocket watch and stared at the clock, "Still not a tick ever since. I am getting tired of waiting though." He then went to talk with Asher for a minute.

"Your sister is welcome to stay for tea. Whoever is a friend of yours, is a friend of mine." Tarrant said as he walked on the table toward his seat. I honestly thought that was a little weird. The rest of us took a seat. A few minutes later Tarrant and Asher wanted to play some games. From what Alice told me, Tarrant likes to think of things that begin with the letter 'm', and likes to figure out riddles.

"Do you want to play, Miss Margaret?" Tarrant asked me. Alice commented, "She is very good with riddles. Our father had a book of riddles before he passed away. She solved every one of them. For example; my life can be measured in hours, I serve by being devoured. Thin, I am quick. Fat, I am slow. Wind is my foe."

Asher was deep in thought, "Is it a candle?" Realizing that he is right, I nodded, "Another one I know is this. 'You heard me before, yet you hear me again, then I die, till you call me again.' That answer is an echo." Chess agreed.

Tarrant spoke, "Well then, let's see if she can solve this riddle. Margaret, why is a raven like a writing desk?" I looked at my teacup in thought. I never heard of this one before… 'Raven… writing desk.' I thought. I turned to the Hatter, smiling over the fact that I might not get the answer. "Is it because… they both have two legs? Or is it because they both have quills?" I guessed.

Tarrant gasped, Chess was dumbstruck, Alice and Asher looked at me as if I was mad, and the hare and the mouse just stood in their seats, confused about my answers.

"What?" I asked playfully. "Nobody ever knows the answer to Hatters riddle. There was never an answer to the riddle. How did you figure it out?" Chess asked, smiling at me. I explained. "It's simple. Pay attention to what a writing desk and the raven have in common. The raven has feathers and the writing desk has a feather to write with, and they both only have two legs. It's not that hard to think up of some answers."

**A few minutes later **

Alice started to talk with him about her trip and Tarrant looked like he was interested when she talked about the different types of tea that she had experienced. He was writing them down on his notes using a ribbon and the napkins. "Chinese tea and England tea." He noted with anticipation, "I will be sure to try these out." Asher was getting up from the chair and began to stretch. "Well, it is getting late. Shall we head back to the castle?" he asked. "I suppose we should." Alice agreed.

We took our time in walking through the woods as we started a game of solving riddles. Without thinking Tarrant spoke, "Alice, are you planning on staying here?" Alice nodded telling him that she is done with what she needed to do and that she and I do not plan on returning.

To my surprise, he felt relieved when Alice said that she was staying. "Well, we couldn't get you back home anyway," He told. "Why is that?" Alice asked curiously. "We are out of Jabberwocky blood," He finished. "But since you two are staying, we don't have to worry about that." "I agree, Tarrant. I actually like these girls." Asher commented. It did not take long for us to reach the castle. The boys took a room for themselves and Alice and I went to our room.

(1) _I thought about bringing out the queen of diamonds in this chapter and I chose the color blue. If you are good at unscrambling words, Terwa is actually water. I decided to use ocean and water for the blue color. Since Mirana and Iracebeth have their own themes to the places they live in. I already have two other queens ready for the next chapters. _

(2)_ I thought that it would be fun to have different flavored teas to my story. If you think that it is a mistake, I can take it off if you want._

(3)_ Okay, some of you may be wondering about the new character I have brought into the story. Picture Taylor Lautner, or any of the hot guys that you're a fan of. I wanted to make a character that has those qualities. Good looks, good acrobat skills, you name it. In my next chapters I will explain a little bit more of my new character._

_Feel free to review anytime you want. _


	4. Women in suits and men in dresses

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that deals with Alice in Wonderland. Only the Blue queen of diamonds, her royal guard and a few other new characters are mine.

_I hope I didn't keep you waiting!_

* * *

Chapter 4- Women in suits and men in dresses

Alice's point of view

"Don't forget, in the next couple of weeks there will be a party to celebrate Alice and Margaret's arrival!" Mirana reminded everyone at the castle. It had been a few days since Margaret and I arrived in Wonderland.

I did some of the decorations with Hatter, Thackery, and Chessur. While Margaret helped out with Mirana on the food and dance music. Others, like Absolem and Mally, just watched from the sidelines.

Sometimes whenever he could, Chessur tries to steal Hatters hat but he mostly fails when Hatter notices.

"I have the menu for the food ready." Margaret calls to Mirana.

"I have the dresses picked out cousin." Mara said.

It took us a few days to set up the whole party. When it was finished, the white castle was a sight to behold. White ribbons hanging on the walls, the food was in the fanciest dishes, the music is calm and alluring, and the suits were fantastic.

Hatter had his usual clothing on, and Asher went for a tuxedo with a classic red tie. Magaret's dress is a strapless purple dress and her hair is pulled back into a ponytail. I had a more elegant blue dress with glitter on the seams and I have my hair down.

It was nighttime when the guests arrived. Most of them were in fancier clothing while others went for a casual look.

Mirana would be standing right by the door and welcome the guests. Mara was seen dancing the waltz with McTwisp. The Blue Queen of Diamonds was holding McTwisp for the dance.

The Tweedles were dancing with each other on the dance floor. Chessur, Absolem, Bayard, and Mally watched from the sidelines.

"Alice! There you are." Mirana called. She was leading a young woman with a gold dress. "I would like to introduce you to Star. She is the Gold Queen of Spades."

The Queen of Spades dress really did look like gold. Her dress has the same design as Mara, but on the opposite side. On her right arm, there was the strap of the dress and on her left she had a gold spade. Her hair was short and it was a pale shade of yellow. On her head was a gold tiara. Her makeup was in yellow. The dress, like Mara's design, was decorated in spades.

Mirana continued, "She wanted to catch up with me about the recent events that happened."

Margaret asked, "What happened to her neck?" I immediately noticed that Star had a long gash in her neck.

"The Red Queen of Hearts wanted to take off my head before my guards managed to help me escape. I waited in hiding until the Champion of Underland defeated the Jabberwocky." Star answered.

"That's horrible. Why would she hurt someone as nice as you?" Margaret mused with confusion. Star went over to Margaret and whispered in her ear. A horrified expression was written on my sister's face.

* * *

After talking with the queens, Margaret and I went to the dance floor. I noticed that Margaret was trying to ignore most of the men that were looking at her.

"Mara is at it again." Margaret muttered as she did a twirl with me.

"What did she do?" I asked.

"I just simply told her that I am single. I didn't realize what she was doing until now. She called every man in her country to try to set me up on a date with them. For some odd reason she reminds me of our mother." Margaret answered with a sigh.

I agreed, "Now you would know how I felt. Have you found any nice guy's yet?"

Margaret shook her head, "I told you before Alice, I will not fall for another man for as long as I live."

After the first few dances are over, we decided to take a break. We went outside to the balcony as we continued to chat.

"I heard something interesting today. Right before the party started, I overheard a conversation from Asher and Tarrant." Margaret said.

"What did you hear?" I asked.

Margaret took a breath as she placed her hands on the rail of the balcony. Before she could answer, the queen of spades interrupted us.

"Pardon me Miss Kingsleigh, but can I talk with Alice? I have something important that she should know." Star told.

Margaret nodded and walked back to the dance floor. Once Margaret was on the other side of the dance floor, the Queen of Spades spoke, "Alice, have you heard anything about the Red Queen from Mirana?"

I shook my head, "I never heard anything."

Star sighed, "I recently have heard this from the Outlands. Iracebeth… has been murdered a few days ago."

I held my breath, "Murdered?"

Star nodded, "Yes, some people from the Outlands have told rumors that the 'bloody big head' was found in a field with a knife in her chest."

I couldn't believe it… The Red Queen was dead?

"Wait… If the Red Queen is dead, where was Stayne?" I asked.

"I am getting to that," Star told in an agitated voice. "We believe that Iracebeth's knave is the suspect to the murder. It is only logical since he was the only one with her at the time."

"But Stayne was stripped from his weapons before they were banished to the Outlands." I stated.

"It's possible that he hid one of his weapons where others wouldn't see. Highly skilled knaves always carry extra weapons with them." Star said. "He is on his way back to Underland."

Now I know that I was in deep trouble.

If Stayne managed to murder the Red Queen and escape from the Outlands, then he would most likely try to find and murder me…

I thanked Star for letting me know about the information and she immediately went to talk with Mirana about the battle plans for if Stayne was to invade the white castle.

I looked toward where my sister is. '_You shouldn't have brought Margaret here! She could get killed by Stayne!' _ I thought to myself with worry. However, I promised my sister that I would help her and protect her as long as I have to.

* * *

Margaret's point of view

After the Queen of Spades was done talking with Alice, I began to walk back to the balcony. My sister looked like she was worried about something.

Everyone else in the background was gathering around the dance floor. Moreover, in the middle of the dance floor was Tarrant. He began to do a strange dance that I wasn't quite familiar with. From his legs moving wildly, to his head spinning, Tarrant was a very good dancing machine!

I turned to Chessur, who had recently appeared right beside me, and asked him, "What type of dance is he doing?" Chessur smiled, as usual, and answered, "Futterwacken." After Tarrant was finished with his dance, everyone began to applaud him.

I stood right by the wall and grabbed at my necklace gently. The necklace was actually a locket. I opened it and looked closely at the pictures. One side of the locket had a picture of my mother and father; the other side had a picture of Alice and me when we were young.

(Flashback)

_Mother was having a hard time when she tried to get Alice to sit still for the picture. Alice, being stubborn, wouldn't do what mother asked. Father suggested that perhaps Alice could sit still if I was with her in the picture. Being right as he usually was, Alice sat on my lap and didn't move a muscle. I was in my purple dress and Alice was in her favorite blue dress with the white apron._

_(End of Flashback)_

I felt someone tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see the one person I least expected…Asher LowCrater.

I heard him chuckle, "Having a nice trip down memory lane?"

I closed the locket and ignored his gaze.

"You know that it's rude to ignore a question." He told in a teasing tone.

"And you should know that it is rude to stand right by someone without them noticing you." I countered.

I took a glance at my sister, who was waiting patiently for me at the balcony.

We stood by the wall in silence for a few minutes. I saw a couple of girls dancing with their dates. Most of them took glances at Asher and waved at him. The men, who Mara tried to pair me with, were whispering to themselves.

"Do you think he will sweep her off her feet?" One man guessed.

"He might. But it depends if she will accept him." Another told.

I couldn't understand what they were talking about. Then it hit me... Mara is trying to get me to date her best guard.

"Nice try, but I promised myself that I will never, ever, fall for another frickin man for as long as I live!" I told harshly as I sprinted back to the balcony for my sister.

"I am not here for that." Asher said quietly. "I am here to be sure _you_ don't ruin the surprise that Tarrant has in stored."

I just looked at him, shocked by what he said.

"She doesn't have any idea that she would be proposed to."I said.

Asher nodded, "I know that this seems weird to you, but my friend has known your sister since she was 9 years old. Believe it or not, he loves her very much."

I laughed, "Yeah right. I know my sister long more than he has. The men back home in London usually fell for my sister because of her beauty; however, once they get a taste of her personality, they drop down like flies."

Somehow, deep inside, I knew that Tarrant is different from all the other guys back home.

Asher and I silently watched from the sidelines as Tarrant was approaching the balcony.

* * *

Alice's point of view

I listened to the music from the party as I watched the night sky above me. Unexpected, I felt something on the top of my head and it covered my eyes.

I used my right hand to feel what was blocking my vision, until I felt another hand on my own.

"Have you any idea why a raven is like a writing desk?" The voice asked.

I immediately realized that it was the Hatter.

I giggled as he lifted his hat off me, "You never get tired of surprises, do you?"

He laughed, "I am just lucky that you _like _my surprises. Oh, and speaking of surprises, I have something for you."

Hatter flipped his hat and took out a little piece of paper that was inside the hat. He gave the paper to me and I began to unfold it.

"I should warn you that this riddle is in another language." Hatter mentioned.

The paper said: **An mbeidh tu ag posadh liom?**

Without looking at the Hatter, I asked. "Do you mind to help me translate it?"

He moved closer to me and whispered in his native language, "It means… Will _ye_ marry me?"

I felt tears coming out of my eyes as I turned to look at him straight in the eyes. "The answer is yes!" I cried as he embraced me and kissed my forehead softly.

"Hatter, thank you for making me the happiest girl." I mused.

He chuckled as he rubbed my back, "I would like you to call me by my real name, Alice _Hightopp_."

"Okay… Tarrant." I spoke softly as we watched the night sky together.

* * *

**A few months later**

It was a few hours before the wedding is to start and I was trying to find my dress. I didn't know whether it disappeared or was stolen but I ran through each of the rooms to find it.

"Ah hell, where is my wedding dress!" I yelled as I stormed through the castle. I was in the middle of the throne room when Margaret and Mirana came.

"Calm down Alice!" Margaret shushed as she rushed to my side. She was chosen as my maid of honor for my wedding.

"What should I calm down for? My wedding dress is missing!" I shouted.

"No it isn't, Alice." Mirana answered. "It is safe, but it is where you least expect." I could tell that she was trying not to laugh.

"I have a feeling Mirana knows something that we don't." Margaret told as she worked on her eye makeup.

Mirana controlled her giggles and told us, "In Underland, when a wedding ceremony is in order, the bride doesn't wear the dress, she wears the groom suit. In addition, the groom has to… You get the idea." Then she laughed as she left to recite the wedding vows.

Did I just hear her right? I was to wear the suit and Tarrant will… I grabbed the suit, dressed myself quickly, and ran out of the room to where the altar would be. Margaret was following closely behind.

Once I was there, I gasped at the sight of my fiancé. He was standing at the altar… wearing my wedding dress.

"Alice! You look dashing with that suit on." Tarrant complimented.

I was too dumbfounded to answer that compliment. I just stared at my wedding dress, which fit's his figure without any problems. He also had some high heels with straps on his feet and a veil to adorn his crazy orange hair.

Margaret asked, "Isn't that dress uncomfortable for you?"

"No, It is not. In fact, I think it looks slimming! Although, the heels are technically giving me a temptation to itch." Tarrant told as he used the end of the heel to itch his feet.

I slammed my hand on my face. "Just promise me that you give the dress back when we have the wedding reception." I begged calmly.

"No need to worry dear Alice." Tarrant reassures as he slowly walked down from the altar. The guests arrived a few moments later and the wedding went on as planned.

After the wedding was done, Tarrant and I went to my room in the castle to switch the clothing. He was in his suit and I with my wedding dress.

"I think the dress looks better on you than it did with me." He commented.

"And you look more dashing in that suit." I countered in reply.

We held hands as we went downstairs to the wedding reception that is waiting for us. Since yesterday, I was Alice Kingsleigh. Now in this moment and in the years to come, I was Alice Hightopp.

* * *

_Author's note: Goodness this almost took me forever to make! I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long! Please review whenever you like. If you see any mistakes, please tell me and I will remake this chapter._


	5. Confessions

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but this story. If I did own the movie, then Alice would have stayed with the Hatter in the first place. Also only Asher, Mara, Star and a few more other characters that have yet to be seen are mine.

* * *

Chapter 5- Confessions

Alice's point of view

_10:45 p.m. Mamoreal Castle_

The party was above the ordinary as my new husband and I enjoyed dancing on the dance floor. Right before the wedding dance came up; Tarrant taught me how to dance the futterwacken as he led the way.

"You start by doing this," He told as he moved my legs in rhythm with his. "And then like this." He dipped me and held onto my back to give me support. "You are getting the hang of this, Mrs. Hightopp!"

"That is because I have a very good teacher." I commented while holding onto him. His face brightend up from the compliment. "You really think so, Alice?" I nodded.

"It just makes me wonder how did you even know how to do this dance." I guessed as I got myself to stand up and resume the dance with my husband. "Did you make it up yourself? Or was it a famous dance back then in Underland?" Tarrant put a finger to his lips in a thinking position.

"I actually made it up." Tarrant confessed with a laugh and twirled me around the dance floor. "It was long before I met you when you were nine years old; I had a difficult time into making a very good dance in order to impress my relatives and Mirana. I did my best to make up a dance move that only I could do better than what the others can do. It took me a long time to figure out how to create a new dance, but after those long days of planning I managed to impress them with my dance."

"And the name, futterwacken. Where did the name come from?" I urged as I stared at him.

"I actually don't remember that far back, Alice. It has been a long time since the name was created." Tarrant said. He looked around the place before he escorted me to the door. "Time to go to bed, my wife."

He opened the door and led me inside to our bedroom. I looked back at the door in concern about the party but Tarrant reassured me. "Mirana told me that if you and I are tired from the party, we can go to bed while she and her court either continues it or stops the whole thing all together."

I accepted his information and went to the closet to find my blue nightgown and got into the bathroom to clean up my teeth to get rid of the party food that might be stuck inside. Next, I quickly jumped into bed where Tarrant was waiting.

"Goodnight, Alice…" He said as he snuck a kiss from me and got under the covers. "Goodnight, Tarrant." I yawned and followed after him into the covers and closed my eyes.

* * *

_9:40 a.m._

A few days had past since the wedding party and Mirana had told us that we can get to go out to her aunts isle for our honeymoon. "I never knew you had an aunt, Mirana!" I told in a surprise tone. "I thought that you and the Red Queen of Hearts were the only ruling monarchs in the family."

"Nobody did, until she tells them. She is sometimes secretive for various reasons unknown." Tarrant whispered to me. I could practically understand Mirana's reasons for keeping some of her family members or friends a secret; because she is afraid that they might get killed if she tells the wrong person.

"What exactly is this isle called?" I asked, curious for some odd reason.

"Isle Clubs." Mirana answered while her fingers fiddled with her white hair.

That caught me off guard as I jumped in surprise and looked at her with wide eyes. "Your related to the Clubs? I though that you only had-" I was soon interrupted as Mirana placed her finger on my lips in order to hush me.

"The Clubs, Diamonds, Spades, and Hearts have a close connection for many centuries. You weren't that surprised when I introduced you to Mara and Star." She said in a teasing manner.

After giving us all of the information about our potential honeymoon spot, me and Tarrant were on our way to Isle Clubs. Mirana did say that the isle wasn't that far from Witzend, and that it was a little beach-side where there was extravagant cabins and calm weather.

I however, kept looking back at the castle from time to time as we went on our way to our destination and looked for my sister who was standing right by the balcony to watch me go. Her hair was down and she wore her usual favorite dress, her arms were crossed as she knelt on the edge of the balcony, a smile was written on her lips as she waved good-bye to us.

"Don't worry so much about her, Alice. she will be fine." Tarrant reassured and rubbed my back in order to relax me.

To be honest, once when we arrived, I totally didn't keep track of how much time we spent on the isle, and Tarrant did mention to me that Time can be a trickster when you don't pay attention. Time could be slow as a snail and other times it can be as fast as lightning when it wants to.

"It maybe will be a few days or a few weeks before we get back to mamoreal." Tarrant explained as he kept track of how many days we stayed at the isle.

"I just wonder how Margaret is doing back at the castle..." I mused as I stared at the sunset with Tarrant holding me close. I could easily imagine her reading her books, helping our friends with different errands, and of course dumping each man that the Blue Queen of Diamonds had thrown in her direction.

* * *

Margaret's point of view

I silently watched from my room when my newly married sister and brother-in-law left to their destination. I held my breath to calm myself because I knew that my sister will be having a lot of fun as a potential wife to the Mad Hatter.

Before she even left, Alice constantly checked on me to see if I was alright. I mostly told her a few times that she shouldn't worry about me and that I should be the one to worry about her. However, I am proud that my baby sister has grown up so fast; she was once a single girl who didn't care in the world about marriage to any man, and now she became a descent woman by finding the right guy she liked.

'How I wish mother would have seen this.' I thought to myself as I imagined how our mother would react to this. Perhaps she was trying to hard to get Alice to marry a man who has a strong title, or has more money, or is suitable for having heirs to the family, when she should've just let Alice be happy with whoever comes around to win her heart. I could tell that Alice is happy to be with Tarrant, and for that...I felt a bit jealous of her.

She gets to have a happy marriage, while I had the not-so-happy-marriage with Lowell.

My hand grabbed a hold of the white curtain as I remembered the whole thing from the very start. However, I was taken away from my thoughts when Mirana came into the room with Mara to chat about politics and such. I couldn't recognize what they were talking about as I made a quick sprint toward the library and closed the door behind me. I stayed right by the door as I listened.

"I must admit Mirana, I have never seen a wedding quite as extravagant as Alice and Hatters." Mara commented.

"Yes, although you have to thank Star for that my dear cousin. She is usually very clever when it comes to weddings." Mirana told. I opened the door a crack to look at what was going on. Mirana and Mara were outside on the balcony that overlooked the whole front yard of the castle.

After a few moments of peace and quiet, Mirana noticed that her young cousin had a small smile that was threatening to grow into a bigger one as she asked. "Might I ask why are you smiling to yourself?"

"Oh, its nothing much, cousin." Mara said as she turned her gaze to her older cousin. "Its just that I am thinking of a new wedding to look forward to." She placed her hands behind her back and moved her hips from side to side.

"I don't think that there is any incoming weddings on the Oraculem. I had just checked it this morning." Mirana told as she grabbed a cup of tea that she carried with her to the balcony and took a sip. "Who do you think will be the next in line for 'being hitched'? It would most certainly not be you, could it?"

Mara chuckled, "Oh, it is not me, dear cousin! But you are getting close."

"Star?" Mirana guessed with one of her eyebrows raised.

Mara shook her head. "Your guard?" The White Queen guessed again earning a hysterical laugh from the Blue Queen.

"I am thinking about getting your right-hand girl a man for herself. To give her a happy life with the man of my choosing, which might happen sooner or later if she accepts." Mara explained as she dusted her blue dress. I had a feeling that she was talking about me, again.. I almost slammed my hand on the door but I decided against it, instead I listened to what my queen will say. I could tell that she wasn't pleased with what Mara was talking about and wagged her finger in a motherly fashion.

"Um, Mara. I am afraid that Margaret will not like that." Mirana told firmly as she placed her cup on the side of the balcony. Hearing her say that made me breath out a sigh of relief, but then it turned into a small gasp as Mara continued. "Why would she not like that? It will be positively lovely to see her getting hitched!" I rolled my eyes and softly slapped my face with my hand.

"Because Alice told me of why Margaret came to Underland for a reason and one reason only; to stay with her sister. She never said anything about Margaret wanting to look for men to sweep her off her feet.."Mirana explained to her younger cousin. I knew that she was half right about that, she still doesn't know of the real reason that I wanted to get away from society and to not be with another man that would break my heart like how _Lowell_ did.

Oh, how I now hate that name! If I ever see that man ever again, I would strangle him so hard that it would make him wish to not mess with me in the first place. Yet, I was foolish enough to not stop him before he disappeared from London, and I was foolish enough to even love that man... At that moment, I fully understood why Alice refused all of those suitors that mother and I had tried so hard to find for her, she knew that they were not a perfect match for her.

I can easily remember her latest refusal to Hamish. _'You are not the right man for me. And there is that trouble with your digestion.'_ Once when she saw Tarrant, she knew that he was the one for her. He was different, and she liked to be different, because that is who she is.

I broke away from my thoughts and listened to the queens conversation once more."She probably doesn't need to. We can surprise your champion by setting up a wedding for her sister." Mara said as she brought out a list and pointed out the suitable men that she thinks are perfect for me. I tried to contain my anger that threatened to break through me. Instead of facing them, I turned my attention away from the chatting queens and kept my mind busy by going through some books.

If I had to choose what I want to do with my free time, I would choose to indulge myself with reading. Poetry, history, romance comedy, you name it, I like them all. I had to thank my late father for that, since he secretly gives me two to three books at a time when I was as little as Alice.'_Reading is a whole new adventure sweetie. The books will lead the way for you, and all you have to do is turn the page.'_ He once told me. I was about to take out a book from one of the shelves when the door opened and the queens entered. Mara gave a surprised gasp as if she didn't expect me to be there, while Mirana gave a look of concern in my direction.

"Margaret, just the girl I need to see!" Mara squealed in excitement and jumped up and down. "I was just talking with Mirana about getting you a boyfriend."

"Yeah, I heard." I told in a nonrealistic tone that told them I knew what they were talking about. "And no, I am not interested." I placed my hands on my hips and gave Mara a look that said 'I mean business'.

"I told you.." Mirana whispered to Mara, telling her that she was right in a sarcastic tone. "But did you listen to me, no.." Mara hushed her cousin and turned her attention back to me.

"Why wouldn't you be interested, Margaret? There are plenty of men that would absolutely love to have you for a girlfriend, or wife if you are really lucky." Mara explained while keeping her eyes locked onto mine, searching them to see if I was joking.

"As what Mirana states, I am only here to be with my baby sister, Alice. And I will still be there for her if she needed me." I told as I walked right up to the door and turned my head in their direction and added, "For some peculiar reason, Mara, you often remind me of my mother since she always tries to get Alice into marriage and fails each time without knowing what her youngest daughter wanted the most out of the men who had asked for her hand." I then walked out of the library, leaving a confused Blue Queen and a very pleased White Queen.

_12:00 P.M. The Garden_

I walked around the white rose bushes as I looked through my thoughts on what I should do with my time as I wait for Alice and Tarrant to return from their honeymoon. So when I found a perfectly nice bench to sit on, I brought out a piece of paper and a pencil and began to list what I can do in the list.

The first on my list is to spend some quality time with Mally, Chessur, and Thackery, so I merrily went on my way to the tea party. They would always welcome me whenever I showed up, not just because I am the sister of their champion, or because I am the sister-in-law to their leader; Tarrant Hightopp, but because I am just Margaret Kingsleigh, nothing more.

"What a relief, Margaret! I was almost going to come and get you, but you beat me to it! Do you mind to enlighten us with your stories?" Chess asked with his usual grin as he stirred some of his tea in a cup.

"Why would you be interested in my stories?" I replied as I took a seat right next to Mallymkun. "I don't think that you would be interested in what I have to say..." They actually nodded their heads telling me that they are interested in my stories. "Okay, so where do you want me to start?"

"Your life on top along with Alice's." Thackery answered before his attention is taken by the utensil he loves the most. "Spoon!" I almost gasped in surprise as I covered my mouth with my hands, I then got myself to calm down and asked, "Didn't Alice tell you guys about the life we had from up top?" They all shook their heads telling me that she didn't tell them.

I cleared my throat. "Alright! I will tell you, and I hope you listen carefully since I am definitely not going to repeat this... The place me and my sister grew up was in London, England. Society was our main source of prosperity when it comes to marriages, trading companies and such. For me and Alice when we were at a certain age, we had to wear stockings and corsets wherever we go, we were also in line for marriage to certain lords.

When Alice was nineteen, she went through a ton of suitors before she became Tarrant's wife. I remembered that when a man is looking for a suitable wife in London, they wanted their soon-to-be wives to be quiet, stay at home and take care of the children, while worrying about the latest fashions and more. For Alice, she was completely different from among the other women. The men who once tried to claim her for their wife only paid attention to her beauty, but once when they see what's behind it, they left."

"If I may interrupt," Chess replied. "How many men did Alice turn down?"

"10." I answered. "There was one among the list of suitors that tried to seduce my sister into marrying him. She turned him down both kindly and rudely that she wasn't interested in him at all, but the most difficult part is that he won't take the hint. She was almost going to surrender until our late father, Charles Kingsleigh, told Alice to go upstairs into her room to wash herself. Neither she or I understood how he did it, but it worked! The guy never returned to pursue Alice. Hamish was the last suitor Alice encountered before she finally took Tarrant's offer for her hand in marriage."

"Did you have any suitors Margaret?" Mally asked as she took a seat right by my cup of tea.

I fell silent as I thought about what I should do when I was asked that question. _'Should I tell them what happened with me or not?'_ I thought to myself in a thinking position. I could see a glimpse of gold from the corner of my eye, telling me that Star has arrived to check up on me.

"Margaret, you know that if you don't want to talk about it, you don't have too." Star suggested as she walked right toward the tea party.

"How did you manage to get here, Star?" Mally asked when she tried to find the carriage that Star usually uses to go to places.

"I walked. Its good to have some exercise when you need it." Star answered. "Plus, I am always prepared when I am going somewhere important." She gestured to what or who was coming right behind her. The one person that I never suspected; Asher LowCrater.

He was dressed in his blue shirt and pants as he walked up to us girls, twirling a dagger in his hands as he looked at us. "Good morning Miss Margaret." He greeted with a small smile.

"Good morning, Asher." I replied before I turned my attention toward Star, who was patiently waiting. "What brings you two over here?" Star swished her gold dress back and forth before urging me to go on a walk with her and Asher by slowly pulling me away from the tea party.

"We just came by in order to talk." Star told in a soft tone of voice before continuing. "I actually was impressed with you when you stood up to Mara. Somebody had to tell her 'no' on her getting them a boyfriend or girlfriend." I gave her a confused glance at her explanation when she continued. "Ever since her husband had died from Iracebeth's invasion of Underland, she took out her stress of being a widow onto others in her court or in someone else's who are single. She even tried to get me a husband of her choosing before I found my boyfriend, who passed away later from the invasion as well."_  
_

"She even tried to match me with one of the girls back at court," Asher interrupted. "But I told her many times that I don't want to be with a woman who I don't accept as 'marriage material'. " He then muttered, "I would not have my heart broken ever again if she had her way." I gasped softly when I noticed that his eyes, once blue, had changed to orange for a second before it turned back to its original color.

We continued to walk until we reached the white castle. Somehow Star needed to go to a meeting with Mara and Mirana about something important so she left me and Asher in the library where we can keep ourselves busy.

As we sat right by the fireplace that is not too far from the shelves, I began to break the silence by saying. "I'm sorry for treating you badly when my sister was about to be proposed to. It wasn't right of me to be so harsh on you." I didn't expect to hear him chuckle as he rubbed his hair.

"That's alright, Miss Margaret. I wasn't offended in any way. Besides, I like it when a girl plays hard to get." He told as he gave me a small smile. "I never truly was interested in pursuing a relationship with you, not yet anyway, but I might be thinking about it."

"If you don't mind me asking, how did your eyes change color? I mean, I have seen Tarrant doing it, but I never suspected that you had it too." I asked, curious to know what his secret was.

He eyed me for a moment before he took a breath and spoke. "Nobody does, until they look closely. They say that you can't judge a book by its cover, yet you don't understand that the book holds more than meets the eye. I have had this since my early bachelor years by the age of 20. Long before Tarrant met your sister Alice when she was just a nine year old, he and I hung around a lot when we were very young.

The Hightopps and the LowCraters were among the best of friends in Underland. Making the hats or giving lessons that deal with martial arts and such, but anyway, Tarrant wanted me to come over to his workshop to help him out with a project of his. Do you know how the saying goes 'you are as mad as a hatter'? Well, the hatters of Tarrant's clan used a very powerful chemical called Mercury, which by a single touch it would stain your hands, your eyes and it makes you do something out of the ordinary and makes you go nuts, bonkers, and off of your head.

Tarrant himself was infected with it before I was, but I got it when my mother and his mother were fighting, they slapped each other in the faces, tackle each other and tumble all around the place, creating a big mess in the workshop. Most of the chemical spilled right on top of me and Tarrant when we were trying to work on his newly made hats. However, we didn't feel affected by it when it settled on us.

After when we managed to clean up most of the mess, me and Tarrant were joking with each other on who we were going to marry, since that we were coming into the age where the men of Underland were to be finding a good wife for them to keep up the family line. For me, I had already found the one who I thought was the love of my life; she was Veronica, a woman of my clan who was very skilled in battle strategies, and fencing.

With hair that is dark as night and eyes that reminds you of the grass, a face that could almost be mistaken for an angel, it seemed as if she was perfect for any man who was desperate to have her, I was one of those men who was crazy about her."

He stopped for a moment to let me catch up with the information he gave to me as I waited patiently for him to continue. I almost couldn't believe that he and Tarrant went through all of that trouble when they were young.

I suddenly broke the silence again as I asked, "When did you discover the poison you were infected with?" I noticed that he shifted uncomfortably before he responded nervously.

"I discovered it... after when I realized that I was betrayed by my own wife. Or should I say, ex-wife?" He told as he sighed. I tensed when I heard the word 'ex-wife' and kept myself from gasping. "It was a few weeks after my marriage to Veronica when I noticed that something about her was... off. After when I returned home from working as a honorary guard to the Blue Queen, I set out for my home where my new wife is suppose to be. It was dark out and only one light in my house was on, I wondered what was going on but I reassured myself that my loving wife was doing okay as I walked into my home.

Little did I realize that I stepped in on my wife, who was making love toward another man of my clan. I didn't know what to say when I saw them on the couch, barely nude..." He stopped again when he took a shaky breath, almost trying to choke back the sobs that were threatening to come out.

I was horrified beyond belief! '_How could a woman like her be that unfaithful to her own husband?'_ I thought to myself as I watched intently with new-found curiosity. I moved toward Asher and did my best to calm him down by rubbing his back.

He took a breath and continued while holding onto my hand. "I couldn't take it anymore as I screamed, grabbed the man, and kicked him out of the house. I actually felt lots of anger that wanted to be burst out of me as my eyes suddenly glowed a deep, dark red color, scaring the woman that I once called my wife as she tried to flee from the house, but I wouldn't let her since I needed an explanation about her behavior. She simply told me that I didn't have what she wanted and that I was old news to her. In the next morning, I along with Veronica, signed the divorce papers and went our separate ways.

Not long after that, I heard later from Tarrant on what happened to his clan while I was taking my anger out on my training. He told me that his whole clan was massacred by the Jabberwocky, the Red Queen's Champion. So I dropped everything that I was doing and rushed over to his place to give him the comfort he needed.

It wasn't long after a few minutes when I finally got Tarrant to calm down from his regret that scarred him for the rest of his life that I received a letter from my queen about what happened in my clan.

I broke down in despair as I learned that my whole clan was massacred as well, but not by the Red Queens champion, it was by my ultimate rival who I despised; Stayne. He, along with the red guards, killed every single one of my own family and friends. So, from that day forward, I vowed that I would train myself so hard that I would crush that knaves skull in my bare hands...

Now, when your sister killed the Jabberwocky and managed to get both the Red Queen and the knave to be banished into the Outlands, it somehow brought peace into my life." He stopped and remained silent in order to cope with what he had lost from the day that his clan was destroyed. The fireplace was the only sound that could be heard in the library as I watched him with pity and sorrow.

"I am sorry that you went through all of that." I replied as I broke the silence. "It must have been treacherous for a person like yourself... but I can assure you that you and Tarrant were not the only ones to feel the pain of losing someone you hold dear. Alice... and I... both lost something back in London before we came here." I took a breath before continuing.

" When Alice was only nine years old, she lost the one person who really understood her predicament when she dreamed of this place; our father. He was a good father and he was always there for her. Whenever she thought of something that was highly above the ordinary, he would tell her to go for it if she wanted to. And what I lost... my dignity when it came to marriage in London, it was ruined when my very own... _husband_ broke my heart." I hissed when I said 'husband' and sighed when I tried to hold in my tears.

I could feel that my confession caught Asher's attention as I looked over to see his hands gripping the chair and his eyes changing from orange to red and blue when he locked his gaze with mine.

"Your... Your own husband... broke your heart? W-Why?" He stuttered as he tried to keep his madness in line.

"Alice could think of many reasons why Lowell did what he did... For the money, for his own selfish entertainment, you name it. But, I was the fool for ever loving him without knowing what strings he is pulling." I told as I refused to show the tears. _'Don't be such a softy on this Margaret!'_ I thought to myself. "You knew that your relationship was a lie when you saw your ex-wife making love toward another man, but for me, I never thought that my relationship would go down the drain until it was too late. Once when my mother passed away, Lowell made his move and disappeared from my life, leaving me a note that said he never loved me and that I am a sorry excuse of a woman of society. I never saw him again after when he left."

I suddenly broke and covered my face with my hands to keep myself from crying in front of Asher, but I felt his hand caressing my cheek as he embraced me, whispering comforting words as he now finally realized why I came to Underland in the first place, also vowing that if he ever sees that man who shattered my heart he would strangle him without any hesitation.

"Shall I help you take that stress out somewhere else?" Asher asked. I nodded, knowing full well of what he was thinking as he led me outside to begin my training.

* * *

_Author's Note: I am so sorry that this took so long to create! I was somehow busy writing some of my other stories that this chapter had to wait. I promise to continue writing this story, and I am not going to abandon it. I will get to work on the next chapter as soon as I can. Review whenever you want._


	6. Margaret's special ability?

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything else but the characters I created.

_Sorry for the long wait. Enjoy the chapter where Margaret is no longer the proper girl, but is instead a girl who kicks butt._

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Chapter 6- Margaret's special ability?

Margaret's point of view

"Come at me again!" Asher called as he lifted up a piece of wood and presented it before him as if it was a shield, prepared for my next attack.

He had changed from his formal clothing to his sapphire blue armor which covered his body, excluding the head, whereas I however had to change from my purple dress to a training suit. (He even thought that I looked more stylish in that suit than a dress!) My hair was tied into a tight bun so that the hair doesn't mess up my concentration when I am training.

I ran toward him and used all of my strength to kick the wood, barely making it slip through his fingers as he commanded like any regular coach would, "C'mon Margaret! Put some muscle into it!"

I panted, "I would if I had any!" I raised my leg again and gave strength in it to try and kick the wood that was between me and the young man, at that time, it was hardly a hit as I stopped to catch my breath.

Asher had been training me for four hours each day, with the exception of dinner, as he was helping me take out my stress by hitting wood, boxes, and any other stuff that he could find that is non-durable enough to make me strong enough to handle some of the most dangerous stuff without having any help from anybody.

"How on earth do you even go through all of this?" I asked with a pant as I tried to catch my breath. "It has only been five days since my training started, and I am just about shot right now!"

"Maybe this is a good time to have a break…" Asher thought as he set the wood back down to the ground as he watched the sky that was becoming darker. "I guess we can continue your training in the morning after breakfast."

I nodded as I began to gather my dress in my arms and attempted to get it on me before Asher told me that I can get dressed when I get back to the castle. We walked back to the castle as the sun started to set, making the beauty of the outdoors more astonishing to behold.

"Its way more beautiful down here than what London had. I am actually glad that I came here with Alice." I mused as I stared at the sunset. "Her world is a lot more fun than what my world was, but that was back when we were in London. Now I see that she has her own world, right here, and I am simply amazed by it." Out of the corner of my eye as I turned my attention at the castle, I noticed that there was a carriage that just recently entered into the castle, and as Asher and I walked closer to examine who is getting out, I recognized that blue dress anywhere.

"Alice!" I shouted in excitement as I ran right to where she was waiting for me. She and Tarrant were back home from their honeymoon!

Alice almost didn't have the time to speak when I came at her and embraced her tightly. "Margaret, what happened to your clothes?" She asked, surprised to see that I was in my training suit instead of the dress that she was use to seeing on me.

I answered her. "While I was waiting for you, Asher actually offered to help me get out of my shell for a bit. So he is training me to be as strong and brave as you are, only with a bit more spunk in my skills." I then demonstrated a kick into the air, careful to not hit my sister who was watching me, and I could tell that she was dumbfounded by what I was doing. Her husband, Tarrant, didn't seemed too surprised by my new skills, almost as if he expected that from me for a very long time. "Other than that, I missed you terribly Alice." I finished before I proceeded to give her another hug.

Until she pushed my arms away and held them down while she looked at me in her serious tone. "There won't be any time to celebrate my return, I'm afraid. I have to get you out of Underland, Margaret. You will have to go home, back to London." I looked at her in disbelief, wondering why would she say that to me.

I stood my ground as I placed my hands on my hips in a gesture that told her 'you should explain yourself before I give you a good scolding' and asked. "Why do you want me to go back to London, Alice? Didn't we have this conversation earlier? I am staying here with you, and there is nothing in this world or in the next that can take you away from me. You need me here, Alice. So what happened to change your mind so quickly?"

Alice was at a lost for words before she slowly explained to me while placing her hands on my shoulders. "Margaret, I just want you safe. There is a guy in Underland who wants me dead, along with Mirana, Tarrant and the rest of our friends. I don't want you to get hurt, Margaret, so can you please go to London and stay there until either I or one of my friends calls you back?"

I shook my head at her. "I will not go back to the one place where my life shattered in front of my eyes! I am staying here, Alice, whether you like it or not! You maybe are the champion that everyone down here looks up to when they are in trouble, but you are still my **sister**! If somebody wanted you dead, they would have to go through me to do it! You are all I have left for family, Alice. And don't try to tell me that it is too dangerous for me to help you out, because that is the reason why I accepted Asher's offer to train and become a fighter, so that I can protect you!"

Alice protested. "Margaret, just go to London and stay there until I get rid of Stayne!"

I countered. "No, Alice! I am not going anywhere! I am not going to leave you to fend for yourself."

"Would you two just stop your bickering! Your making me sick just by listening you two battling it out like a mother and her daughter!" Asher shouted, bringing our argument to a halt. His eyes just about turned blood red from his outburst. As soon as he calmed down, his attention turned to my sister, "Trying to convince your sister to go back home won't do the trick, Alice. From my calculations, Stayne only just escaped from his banishment in the Outlands, he won't be here until a few more days. It will give Margaret plenty of time to train and get better with her martial arts before he arrives."

"I just want her to be safe, Asher." Alice begged. "Stayne would kill her on the spot if she stays here. I am not even sure if she can handle a fight like what you expect of her to do."

Tarrant reassured her by patting her shoulder. "Asher is a very skilled fighter Alice. No one can get through the defenses of an enemy like how he does. Just give Miss Margaret here a chance to show what potential she has safely hidden inside of herself."

Alice looked like she was about ready to protest, but sighed in defeat and gave me a look that I didn't recognize, probably something to deal with me refusing to obey what she said. Without a second thought, Tarrant turned her attention away from me and Asher as they continued to get their luggage out of the carriage and into the castle.

"Be sure to figure out what her special ability is, Asher, old friend." Tarrant called over his shoulder before he and Alice disappeared into the castle.

Over the next few minutes as I stared at the castle, I thought about what Tarrant had said and it confused me to say the least. He said that I had a hidden ability that I never realized to be possible, and that I need to release it somehow. Asher had interrupted my thoughts. "Shall we get some lunch before we continue with your training?"

I nodded and walked with him to the kitchen where I made us some ham and cheese sandwiches with tea. We ate in silence as I thought through what Alice had talked about. The name of the person who wanted to kill my sister; Stayne, was the first thing that came to my mind. '_How is he a big threat to my sister? And why would he want her dead?'_ I thought as I chewed on a part of my sandwich. Even though I don't know how big or how strong he is, I would probably have to ask Asher if he knows anything about that man.

I decided to try to satisfy my curiosity by asking, "Who is this Stayne guy that Alice wanted to keep me safe from?"

I noticed that Asher jumped in surprise by my question as he tried to think through his thoughts, probably thinking about how he should say it in my point of view. "You have heard about the Red Queens supposed murder, right?" I nodded as he took a deep breath. "Stayne, or as he is called "Illosovic Stayne", is known to be the Knight of Hearts, Iracebeth's right hand man when it comes to keeping her reign in Underland. Last time I heard, he was banished to the Outlands with the Bloody Big Head. But as how I explained to Alice when you two were arguing, he won't be here until a few more days. To cut to the chase, Miss Margaret, he is very dangerous."

"And you and Tarrant thought that I could be able to beat a knight like that when I release my inner ability... I mean, do I even have an ability that I never even knew about?" I mentioned in a soft tone.

He nodded. "Everybody has an ability, Miss Margaret, even you and your sister." He stood up and stretched his arms, hearing the cracks in his knuckles before he came over to me and studied me as if I was a book. "Most people in Underland, human or animal, have a ability that represents them in their highest advantage of victory. Take me for example, I am very well trained in sword fights and I am a knight who is not to be messed with in the battlefield. But, my special ability has to deal with controlling the flames that are hidden deep within my body, waiting to burst forth and destroy all that is in my path. Do you want know why my last name is LowCrater?" He stopped for that moment, allowing me to try to guess.

I shrugged in apprehension. "I don't even know the whole story, Asher. You only showed me a few pages of your life." And that was mostly to the part where his clan was murdered, and when he divorced his ex-wife, the rest of his life was a little bit harder to understand.

He knocked himself in the head with his fist and changed the question. "Okay, let me try to get this straight. I am sure that you know the meaning of Tarrant's clan name; the Hightopps."

I nodded once more. "It meant that his late family and friends were very great hatters. And that their hats, I personally figured, were high and very tall."

"They lived up to that name because that is who they are, and what they make." He moved a few steps away from me and held out his hand. In the next second, I gasped in shock when a flame was produced from his hand, yet he seemed to be not fazed by the burning sensation. "As for the name of LowCrater, my clan had a special ability where we can summon flames from inside of us. And before you ask, Miss Margaret, my clan was believed to have been born straight from the crater itself."

He clenched his hand and the flame disappeared into nothing, only smoke could be seen from his hand before the wind blew it away. "Another example is Tarrant. He has a certain ability that sets him apart from the other hatters of his family, and for as long as I've known him, he has a very interesting perspective on people, objects, and more."

I nodded, understanding what he was saying. So throughout the rest of the day, I continued to train under Asher's guidance as I try to unlock that ability that I have yet to release.

* * *

Morning came quickly as I decided to get myself out of bed. As I thought about what I need to do to realize what my ability is, I thought about taking a little walk through the Tulgey Woods.

Taking a path that I hadn't explored yet, I let my mind be open to whatever I encounter in the forest. Tarrant once told me that if I ever find myself lost in the woods with nowhere else to go, try to make up a new path that will lead you somewhere else. I kept that in my mind as I walked through the forest, ducking under branches and looking back and forth from time to time so that I was keeping track of where I was.

Once when I passed one of the signs that led deeper into the woods, I never noticed the small eyes that seemed to be almost human-like. I almost thought that I felt something on my shoulders as I tried to brush off the urge to itch. Had my vision become brighter and more focused than before? I tried to look around to see what was going on until I saw a small bird, or- what was a bird with pink feathers and the top half where its eyes are supposed to be is actually a mirror.

I curiously looked at it closer to see that the eyes I am looking at are not my own. I know this because my eyes are brown, and the eyes I am looking at are big and round like I was wearing glasses. The pink bird with the mirror somehow opened its mouth in a happy way when I was looking at him. I moved my right hand up to touch my eyes, and I felt the lens of the glasses that were not my own. I grabbed the edges gently as I pulled it off of my eyes, seeing that there was a strange creature that was on me.

It looked like it was a pair of glasses that had two legs and a long pointy nose. Its black eyes winked at me as I struggled to hold back a gasp. "What exactly are you?" I asked the glasses creature, pondering. "I appreciate what you were trying to do for me, but I can see just fine without your lens'."

"That's a shame. You look way more gorgeous with those on." A familiar voice said from behind me. I turned around to see that Asher was standing before me in his short-sleeved blue shirt, pants, and black boots.

"What are you doing here, Asher?" I asked, suspicious.

He shrugged as he gave a little wave to the walking glasses and the half bird-half mirror thing. They waved back to him before they disappeared into the darkness of the shadows. "I just came in here to check up on you. I don't want you to get lost in the woods here."

I sighed as I continued to walk a few steps to keep myself busy, and to avoid him when I turn to the next part of the woods. However he interrupted on my concentration as he warned. "Watch your step, Miss Margaret."

I growled in annoyance at his over-protectiveness of me. "I know, teacher!" I raised my left leg over the log that was in my way before I heard a loud honk that shook me like a leaf. I looked down to see that there was a flock of horns that act like a flock of geese. Too surprised for words, I almost tripped by backing up on the log, to which I decided to sit down and apologize for my actions on the poor creatures. "I am so sorry for stepping on you!"

The big horn was honking over to a little pond where a few miniature versions were following their mother. The baby's body were a light purple whereas the mother had a dark violet color, their legs almost reminded me of a duck, and the honking reminded me of a goose. After when the mother goose got her babies to safety in the water, the goose looked at me sternly and honked at me as if trying to say something to me before going into the water.

"She did say that she was sorry!" Asher called out to the goose, or horn creature.

"What were those things?" I suddenly asked, a little bit frightened from the experience.

"Honkers." Asher told. "They have the same honks as the geese from your world, the same webbed feet like the ducks from your world, and they do carry quite a temper if stepped on."

He grabbed my hand gently as he led me to where a little water trail was as I studied the new surroundings. I was peculiarly interested in the next creatures that I saw on the water. They looked like frogs! One of them looked like a mutated form of a bongo and another was like a symbol. And once when we crossed the little trail I started to hear some kind of laughter from a bird, I curiously looked over another log in my path to see what was going on.

There was a fountain, and in the water was some sort of umbrella birds that were washing themselves in the water. I decided not to disturb them and kept on walking with Asher as I went on a new path to finish up my walk.

"Hoo!" A owl called from the shadows as it flew right by me. It perched itself on my shoulder as I studied it in a confused glance. The owl's feathers were red, and it had a little bit of orange hair on top of its head, big yellow eyes looking at me curiously as it stretched its neck, revealing some sort of long neck that made a sound like a musical instrument.

"That is a Accordi-owl. Its long neck makes a sound just like how an accordion does." Asher explained as he reached out to scratch the owl's head. I reached out my own hand as the owl turned its head to a side in order for me to tickle him.

"He's so cute!" I cooed as the owl moved over on my shoulder and snuggled close to me. "But, I think it might be time to let him go." I grabbed the owl and walked over to a nearby branch for the owl to sit on, making sure that he stays on it as soon as I left. But each time I try to get him to sit on the branch, he flies back on my shoulder, stretching out his accordion neck as he called out "Hoo! Hoo!"

"I guess he likes you, Miss Margaret." Asher laughed quietly as he covered his mouth, not getting over the cuteness that the owl would not stay where he is supposed to be.

I glared at him as I refused to snap in front of the owl. "Just lead me back to the castle, please!"

* * *

_Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, again. I was very busy making my other stories, so I am going to try to not abandon this story. Review whenever you want, as always._

_Seems like Margaret has found herself a new friend that wants to be right by her. I hope you readers don't mind that I brought the some of the creatures from Tulgey Woods in the Disney version of the Alice In Wonderland in here. Do you remember those cute creatures? Especially the owl? I always wondered what it would be like to have them here!_

_Also from the examples about Tarrant having the abilities of Perspective, I borrowed that idea from the Alice In Wonderland game on the Wii. Just so that you know._


	7. Margaret vs Stayne

Alice and Margaret in Wonderland

By: Lovely girl 10

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Asher, Mara, Star, and a few more characters that have yet to appear in the story.

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Chapter 7- Margaret vs. Stayne

Alice's point of view

I watched from the balcony as I wondered how long it would take for my sister to return back to the castle. I sighed as I finally understood her reasoning for staying with me in Underland.

But I could not accept it when it comes to her safety. I just hoped that Asher would keep her safe from Stayne. My fists clenched tightly as I tried to not imagine the terror that Stayne would do to her if she stayed in Underland for far too long.

I also didn't understand why Tarrant, my own husband, would agree to the idea of my sister learning how to fight for herself. I mean, I know his reason for changing my mind so suddenly, but it still didn't change the fact that I have to protect my sister.

After when Tarrant and I unpacked our stuff, he went back to his private room where he makes the hats. I just walked out to the balcony to think through my thoughts on what to do for Margaret.

I turned away from the balcony as I walked out of my new bedroom that I will share with my husband and went out the door, intending on talking to Mirana about getting Margaret back to London, where she will be safe until I come and get her.

It didn't take long for me to find her, since she was in her throne room talking with the Queens of Diamonds and Spades about the politics that they needed to do for their separate kingdoms. "You know that if you speak a bit more kindly to the plants around you, Mara, they will definitely add to the beauty of your kingdom." Mirana said.

Mara chuckled. "Alright, I will do my best to do what you ask, old friend. But before I go back, I still want to be sure that Margaret has somebody to be with for the rest of her life. I still have to make her see that she can be happy like how her sister is." She obviously didn't realize that I overheard the conversation as I stopped dead in my tracks, fully realizing what the queen was trying to do.

Tarrant did tell me that Mara usually has a habit of being a matchmaker. When I asked him why did she have it he kindly explained to me that she had been like that since her husband died in the Underland war. "His cause of death was by a stab in the eye. The poor king did his best to not give in to death's spell." He once said to me when we were on our honeymoon.

Mirana and Star stopped talking when they saw me as they hastily shut their mouths for fear of my reaction to what I heard. "What?!" I yelled, taking Mara's attention away from her friends. She seemed shocked that I was listening on the conversation, yet she tried her best not to show it. I couldn't blame her, I was trying my best to not show my anger in front of her.

But before I could think of a good combat, I suddenly heard various footsteps that were coming towards the throne room. I turned around just in time to see a few familiar red cards as they attempted to charge at us with their spear's in toe. I quickly grabbed the Vorpal Sword as I told the queens to go somewhere safe as I try to hold off the enemy.

The first red card with the black diamonds on its chest tried to slash me in the chest as I dodged the attack, I used my elbow to stab him in the gut as the force of my attack pushed him to the ground. The next few card soldiers looked like they were ready to destroy me when my attention was diverted. Until they lost their armor in a blink of an eye as Tarrant held up his hand, using his perspective ability to get rid of the armor that protected them.

He then ran over to me while he took out his own sword, preparing to fight alongside me as we fought through more of the guards. Clearly Stayne must have arrived and planned on invading the White Castle. But as how Asher informed, he wasn't supposed to arrive until a few more days. Stayne was somehow way ahead of us.

Once when the red card soldiers surrounded us in a circular motion I could faintly see the knaves face in the crowd as he stepped out, revealing himself. He didn't change a bit since the last time I saw him, it was all black like the heart eye-patch on his eye. His smirk sent shivers down my spine as I pointed my sword threateningly at him.

"Alice. You haven't changed a bit since we last met." He commented in his usual tone. He took out his own sword, ready to destroy me and all those that I cared about. "Its too bad that this will be our last meeting." He tried to stab me in my chest, but I quickly dodged it as I backed away from him.

"That reminds me, how did living in the Outlands go for you?" I asked out of boredom.

He scoffed and waved his hand in a gesture that he wasn't in the mood to talk about what he went through. But he still answered me. "Too hot, not enough people to torture, and the queen was a nuisance. To cut to the chase, I wasn't interested in her complaining anymore, so I did her a favor and ended her life. Which is exactly what I am going to be doing with you and that idiot of a hatter of yours..."

* * *

Margaret's point of view

As Asher and I walked our way out of the woods, I could see a dense meadow out in the open. The meadow looked like there were giant mushrooms, trees, and flowers of different kinds that surrounded it.

The strange owl was still hanging around on my shoulder, trying his hardest to be gentle when he is close to me. He often says, "Hoo!" each time we pass by something that intrigued him.

"Why couldn't this little owl stay in the woods where he belonged? It is way better than hanging out with me." I asked in confusion as we continued to walk.

"Some animals actually know that they could trust a person with their life, and they eventually gain the humans friendship by choosing whoever they pick." Asher explained as he searched for the way out. "Mally and Thackery once roamed in the woods before they found Tarrant, and they began to do the things that he likes, but in their own way, they do a lot of things that may seem to be chaotic."

"So the accordi-owl chose me because..." I led on, wondering how it was connected.

"In this world, perhaps, the accordi-owls knowledge is very vast." He went on until he trailed off, his eyes widened in shock and realization of what was going on with the owls attachment to me. "That's it! I think I have finally figured out your special ability Margaret!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" I rushed, trying to calm him down. "You mean to say that I have power over knowledge?"

He nodded, and weird enough, so did the owl. "It is quite obvious how you know something without even looking into the books to be sure that it was right. Same with how you have learned many lessons from my skills in fighting off the enemies. You are a natural."

I just stood there in shock by what he had just said. I didn't even know if I want it to be true, but I somehow had a gut feeling telling me that he was right, that I, Margaret Marie Kingsleigh who use to have been a Manchester to a guy who treated me as nothing more than a substitute to his main girl, is the holder of Knowledge!

The owl just silently hoos as if he was agreeing with my teacher before he stretched out his accordion neck a little. I shook my head in annoyance. "You all have got to be kidding me!" I raised my hands in the air in frustration before I clutched my head, shaking it as if I was having a nightmare. "I am not that smart like how you think I am!"

Asher disagreed. "Alice thought of the same thing when she thought that she would never be the champion that the whole country of Underland spoke about. And yet, she managed to pull it off in the end. I believe that you would do the same if you were in her shoes." I looked down to the grass in silence. He did have a point right there.

But the mention of my sisters name struck inside my head like an arrow just shot right through me. I almost completely forgotten why I finished my walk in the first place. Ignoring the owl that was hanging on tight to my shoulder, and Asher's protests of "Where are you going?", my adrenaline kicked in as I rushed over to Mamoreal. To my sister who is waiting for me.

I passed through the trees, dodged the bushes, ignored the strange expressions that the huge flowers were giving me as I ran on the path. It was until I smelled something dreadful that I began to slow down and search around for the source.

I smelled smoke. Something was burning...

My eyes widened as I realized that the castle was under attack. I kept going as I studied the surroundings of the once beautiful white castle that was now in ruins. The flames were destroying the trees, the red card soldiers were crushing the perfectly good flowers on the ground. It was all unbearable to watch!

Asher finally caught up with me as we stared at the horrific site the castle was in. "What happened?" I asked, confused and upset about the predicament. "What happened to the castle?"

I heard a sudden crack of knuckles as Asher simply stated, growling. "Stayne. He is here."

I looked at him in concern. The banished knave of Hearts; Stayne, was here in Mamoreal?! "But you said that he wouldn't be here until the next few more days!" I argued.

He raised his hand in a gesture to hush me before I got out of control from my outburst. "I know I said that, but I never expected for him to trick us like this." He looked around the front entrance as he studied the guards that were patrolling. "We have to save the castle before Stayne gets his way. But how in the name of Underland are we going to get rid of the red card soldiers?"

I looked from the entrance to the walls with the balcony showing in the distance, my mind was already pondering on what to do in a situation like this. I figured that the guards would be on duty throughout the castle, inside and out, so I stated. "Maybe we should just fight our way into the throne room until we get to where Stayne is and take him down."

Asher turned and protested. "But, Miss Margaret!" I could tell in his tone of voice that he doesn't want to see me get hurt, but I reassured him by nodding my head. "Fine!" He shrugged. He pulled out one of his pocket knives until he came upon the sewing needles and handed it to me, obviously knowing that I prefer to use the needles over the dangerous knives.

One of his teachings had gotten me into using these very small needles like how the ninjas do in one of my favorite books back at home. All I needed to do was lock onto my target and shoot them toward the enemy. In addition, no matter how many times I miss or lose any of them, the needles always mysteriously reappeared back into my hands.

I took my attention back toward the guards as I held onto my needles tightly in my grasp. I then let them fly through the air as they landed on the red card soldiers heads roughly, catching their attention a little too well.

I could hear Asher's flames glistening in his hand as he throws it toward the guards, making them flee for their lives as they try to get away from the flames that shot right out of his hands.

Asher and I moved on through the castle entrance as we went through some of the rooms, wondering where the danger is in the castle. I wished that I didn't think of that because I heard in the distance a scream that froze me dead in my tracks.

Alice was in danger...

Without thinking, I ran right through the long hallways, dodging the cards attacks and pushed them to the side as I ran to where my sister might be. Asher did his best to follow me, but I was too quick for him as my sisterly instincts took over me. The owl flew off of my shoulder as he followed me as well.

"I'm coming Alice!" I whispered suddenly as I kept on running, ignoring the sounds of clangs and thumps as I was being brought closer and closer to the enemy. I stopped violently as I came into the room where the battle was happening.

I saw that Tarrant was lying on the floor, panting out of exhaustion and was holding onto his sword tightly in his right hand, he seemed to look like he was in pain as his other hand grabbed the other as if he had just been wounded from the fight. His hat was off to the side as his crazy orange hair was shown, his eyes were in a deep red and there were some specks of grey.

In front of him was Alice who was knocked down to the ground, clearly gaining some bruises and cuts from her battle. Her Vorpal Sword had been knocked out of her hand forcefully as she tried to withstand the pain that was given to her by a man in the room I had yet to meet. Her hair looked like it barely dodged a slash that was meant for her neck, but from what I thought, it was better for her to lose her hair than her life. Her blue dress was a mess, getting stains from the dirt and it was almost in sheds.

The mysterious man whom I believed to be Stayne had jet black hair that was pulled back and it reached to the end of his neck, a heart shaped eye-patch was on his left eye. He wore a black suit of armor on his body, with a dark red cape. To me, I actually thought that he looked positively hideous! More hideous than my own ex-husband Lowell.

I overheard what he was saying as he came up to my sister, grabbing her by her curly blond hair as he placed his sword right by her neck. Alice was wincing in pain as the Knave of Hearts was pulling her hair too hard. "Too bad you didn't choose the right man for yourself, Alice. I could have given you everything that your heart desired. Heck, you could have even become the new Queen of Hearts if you chose to accept my offer. But instead, you chose an idiot of a hatter as your husband."

I didn't know what he was meaning to tell Alice, but I could feel that I want to strangle that man for his actions against my sister. I slowly tiptoed toward the villain, making sure that I surprise him with my attack while he was distracted. With my needles in hand, I unmistakably slashed my needles on the back of his neck, making him drop my sister down as he covered his neck in pain.

"Who would dare strike me?!" He yelled as he turned around and glared at me.

"That would be me..." I said, hissing at him and presenting my needles as a threat. "Leave my sister out of your game. Your battle is with me." He and I circled each other as Tarrant wearily walked over and slowly dragged my sister away from the arena.

Stayne narrowed his free eye as he studied my appearance, then he scoffed with a laugh. "I believe that I came here for the Champion of Underland, not her overprotective, yet unattractive, sister. But nevertheless, you might as well get your death wish while you are here." He drew his sword back as he prepared himself to end me here and there.

But, what he doesn't know is that I am not going to let him win. He began to charge at me as I just stood where I was, getting ready to deflect his attack by dodging the sword and sent a powerful kick to knock it out of his hands. The sword then spiraled over to where Mirana's throne chair was standing, making a dent in the tiled floor as it stood in a crooked angle.

Stayne looked at where his sword was and then turned to me in a glare that I recognized to be one with anger. He screeched as he attempted to charge at me again. Abandoning the needles, I used my kicks and my fists to deflect his own as we continued to fight with each other. Throughout the kicks and punches, Stayne looked like he was about ready to try to end it.

"You know that you can't defeat me, girl." Stayne warned. "I am a well trained knave while you are just a regular girl who has no right to bother me while I am working."

"When you are threatening my sister, I will have no choice but to fight back!" I stated.

Being a little bit cocky, I didn't notice that he moved his leg in order to make me trip, to which I slipped and slammed into the ground as I withstood the pain that my back was giving me. Stayne then knelt down and wrapped his gloved hand around my neck, probably ready to choke me to death as he smirked. "Any last words before I end your life?!"

"Yes..." I said, not giving in to the fear that he was expecting me to do in a situation like this. "Will you kindly pay attention to your history lesson!" I gathered up some strength in my legs as I pushed him off of me in full force. He grunted in annoyance as I quickly got myself up and managed to stop his punch that was aiming for my head.

But how little did I know was that it was what he was hoping for because he used his leg to push me away from him. I felt like I was flying backwards as my body crashed into Mirana's throne chair. It was smashed from my collision as I wiped away the blood that was shown on my lower lip. I almost wanted to gasp when I saw that I was within reach of Stayne's sword that was still stuck on the tile floor.

Obviously, Stayne saw what I might be thinking about doing as he growled, making a dash toward me and raised his fist upwards, ready to destroy me. I fumbled toward the weapon as I ignored the urge to panic, what with Stayne coming closer to ensure that I had my demise, I knew that there was no excuse for fear to take over.

I had to do this for Alice!

I reach my right hand over to the sword as Stayne was shouting on top of his lungs, "Off with your-" He didn't finish his sentence as he, Tarrant, and I, heard the familiar sound of flesh being stabbed into. The Knave of Hearts just stood there in shock, his eye that didn't have an eye-patch didn't blink, it was full of realization and panic. His mouth was agape as the sword I held in my hand moved a bit in his abdomen that was exposed to the dangerous weapon.

I wasn't sure about whether I should be happy, or horrified, or what. But I watched in silent horror as the body of the Knave fell down to the ground, the blood was seeping out, making a big mess on the floor.

Both Tarrant and I didn't know what to say as the whole group of people from the castle came inside and saw the whole mess. Asher fumbled in the crowd as he panted out of exhaustion, I could tell that he was clearly amazed by what had happened.

Suddenly, Mirana came toward where I was and examined the situation, a look of disgust was written on her face when she noticed the blood. "I have no idea of how you did it, Margaret, but you did it. You killed the Knave of Hearts..."

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_Author's Note: I hope you liked this chapter. Now you got to see Margaret kick Stayne's butt! Since that Alice was the Champion of Underland, now Margaret is in the spotlight with her sister! Review whenever you need to review, and I will work on the next chapter._


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